Lovestruck
by Little Miss Bunny
Summary: With all the glamor and dazzle happening on and offstage, the idols are in another world altogether. But things start changing when they meet a curious brunet and his siblings in Namimori. We've seen Tsuna's perspective—what about the idols? Featuring their POV on the events in "Starstruck" and some extra scenes on the side. Because let's be honest, they can be extra as fk. All27.
1. Chapter 1

" _A paper crown_

 _And a heart made of glass_

 _A tattered gown_

 _And her kingdom of ash_

 _She walks alone_

 _She can never look back."_

 _-_ "Paper Crown" by Alec Benjamin

* * *

"It's been about 9 months since your last comeback and there's been some speculation that everyone's taking on different jobs despite you being a relatively new group," a female reporter said from behind the cameraman. With her face done with light makeup, she was a pretty, young woman, and her purple suit made her stand out against the bright white walls and black floors. Other reporters backstage wore casual clothes since they weren't the ones the cameras were focusing on.

Ryohei laughed, with Yamamoto joining in beside him. The two idols were similar in height but Yamamoto was just an inch or two taller. His legs looked even longer with the finely-tailored suit he was wearing. The cameraman, Masashi, was quick to keep a respectable pace in front of them while the reporter's heels clacked hastily against the ground, drowned out by the constant activity and chatter in waiting rooms.

"Was that why your comeback has been delayed for so long?" the reporter, Sachiko, said.

"Oh no!" Ryohei said, grinning. "We've been working extremely hard on this comeback and it just took a little longer than the last one. Or, well, our debut."

Yamamoto nodded, his easy smile making Sachiko remember how handsome these idols were. It irked her more than pleased her. "Yup, and we hope our fans enjoy it as much as we worked on it!" He chuckled. "Actually, Gokudera had a hand in most of it. We just did what he told us to do."

"He's an extremely talented producer!" Ryohei said. "I don't know anyone else who loves music as much as he does. Really, I hope the fans appreciate all the work he does!"

"It must've been an experience," Sachiko said. "G from Primo has also been known to produce some tracks for his group, too, and it took him two years before Talbot-san let him."

Yamamoto laughed. "Gokudera's smart in his own way. Plus, he and G-san are different in a lot of ways even though they're brothers."

"Half-brothers." Sachiko ignored Masashi's scowl but didn't bother fixing her correction. She used to report for the evening news and was a journalist at heart. Didn't mean that she had to throw that away for _entertainment_ news.

Ryohei maintained a friendly face but placed his hands elegantly in his pockets to hide his fists. Masashi smoothly panned the camera at a higher angle to hide the gesture.

"Family is family," Ryohei said. "Gokudera wrote a whole song about it, too."

Yamamoto beamed. "You know what my favorite part is?" He pumped an arm up and down in the air to an imaginary beat and belted out, " _Mother, father, brother, sister, and all my friends, thank you for your love!_ "

A door slammed open down the hallway before three girls in gothic clothing peeked out with whoops and wolf-whistles. Their faces were white from makeup and their lips were coated with blue lipstick.

" _Mother, father, brother, sister, and all my friends, I love you so much!_ " two sang back with some giggles. " _Their warm voices have always gently pushed me forward!_ "

Ryohei and Yamamoto easily joined in to finish it off. " _For meeting me…thank you!_ "

Yamamoto gave them a thumbs-up. "Perfect!"

The only girls group to ever grace the Varia Entertainment Company, E-Cho, raced down the hall and met Ryohei and Yamamoto quickly with grins, high-fives, and fist-bumps. Baffled, Sachiko could just stand awkwardly to the side while Masashi quickly caught the whole scene on camera.

The leader, Eri, who had short, side-swept blonde hair, jabbed Ryohei's shoulder playfully, standing at almost the same height even without heels. "Ryohei, did you switch gyms? I barely see you around anymore. Colonnello's running on tears with the treadmills, you know? And Knuckle—God help him."

Ryohei laughed. "It's comeback season, Eri-senpai! I'll go back after! Extreme promise!"

Eri rolled her eyes, which were electric blue from her contacts. "Yeah, same goes for me but I'm not missin' out. I better see you there. I miss a not-braindead sparring partner."

"Oh, sparring! How's your shoulder doing now?"

Eri shrugged. "It's fine. Nothing to worry about. Just a muscle strain."

"Take care of yourself, Eri-senpai! Your health is extremely important!"

"Look who's talking."

Rina, the youngest in the group, squealed and spun on her platform boots with ease as she walked around Yamamoto, her blonde pigtails bouncing with the movement. "Yama-chan, you're so adorable! Look at you, all grown-up with your suit and everything. Isn't he cute, Aiko-nee?"

Nodding her approval, Aiko looked up at Yamamoto like he was the tastiest lollipop in the world. She twirled her curly blonde hair around a gloved finger and sighed. "We should start getting nice, fresh trainees like you. That would be the dream. Instead we're stuck with Vindice-wannabes."

Rina pouted. "It would be nice to have a cute boy group but _no_." She looked down at her short black skirt with a huff. "We're all stuck with this. Oh, did you know Luss-chan made this for me?" She showed off a silver charm bracelet around her delicate wrist. "Isn't it _so_ pretty?"

"You're also really cute, Rina-senpai!" Yamamoto said, grinning. "Don't forget that."

Squealing, Rina hugged Yamamoto's arm, only reaching his chest with her shorter height. "Come join Varia, Yama-chan! It'll be fun! And call me Nee-chan!"

Sachiko didn't think that was _that_ uncensored compared to other girl groups. Was it because of their company or just how they were?

"Decimo, standby 5 minutes!" someone shouted.

"Oh, already?" Rina sniffled as she pulled away from Yamamoto. "Good luck, Ryo-chan, Yama-chan! We'll be watching!"

"Break a leg," Eri said, squeezing their shoulders.

She leaned forward, turning their backs to the camera, and whispered something in their ears. Sachiko pursed her lips when she saw the idol glance at her from the corner of her eye. Ryohei and Yamamoto snorted, trying to hold back their laughter, when Eri finally pulled away, her lips quirked into a slight smirk.

"Go knock some girls up," she said, waving over her shoulder. "Ciao."

Rina and Aiko cackled at the young men's red faces while they followed their leader back to their waiting room. "Go! Go! Go!" they said in perfect unison.

Masashi mentally made a note to tell the editors to cut Eri's out comment at the end. Sachiko finally stepped forward, trying to save face. "You seem very close with them," she said.

Ryohei nodded, chuckling sheepishly. "They're like our big sisters. Oh, right. Excuse us, we're going onstage soon."

"Thank you for the interview," Sachiko said almost blandly as the two men passed her by. Yamamoto gave her an easy grin before disappearing behind a door some feet away.

Masashi turned off the camera, but kept it steady on his broad shoulder. "Alright, I don't know why you transferred here or if you don't know what the hell's going on, but if you hate it so much, go back to that crappy evening news show you were in, whatever it's called."

Sachiko narrowed her eyes. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me. Look, you might think that these idols are just here to look pretty but they're sure as hell working hard for it." Sachiko bristled when Masashi looked her up and down. She was tempted to whack him with her mic. "At least, _pretend_ that you're trying, Christ. This isn't any easier than what you do with the evening news."

When Decimo trailed out of their waiting room, all clad in sleek black suits and different-colored dress shirts, Sachiko decided that this wasn't a world she could just blend in so easily. She responded to their polite greetings with a small nod and decided that she went in way over her head with this one.

The fans agreed.

* * *

 _gINgerz_9_ tweeted _:_ ok whoever this reporter is like who would just say things like that? ryoheis a champ for handling her so well #LoveDecimo #LoveRyohei

 _HAYATOLUVERR3_ tweeted: ryohei and yamamoto being hayato's knights is soooo satisfying #LoveDecimo

 _Kayif11_ tweeted: famiglia power #LoveDecimo #famiglia

 _69_pines_ tweeted _:_ bruh who else wanted to know what eri told her precious boyz? like theyre in different companies but theyve always been there for decimo still? #LoveDecimo #eriismahqueen #queeneri

* * *

Smiling was only slightly easier when fans were around, and Takeshi had to constantly remind himself that he was here in the moment because of them, that their love and attention were because he made it big, just like his brother. So he smiled and grinned at every face that greeted him, that looked at him with moony eyes, but never truly _see_. He guessed it was better that way.

"I—I'm such a big fan, Yamamoto-kun!" a fan said, probably no older than 15.

Her eyes lit up when he signed her album and squeaked when he handed it back to her with a grin. "Thanks!" he said. "It was great meeting you, Yuki-chan! Your support means a lot!"

The girl blushed hard, mumbled the same under her breath, and quickly moved down the table. Yamamoto forgot her name after going through several more fans, their faces and names blurring together in a misshaped blob in his head. He made some laugh and some cry, but he mostly made them blush and look at him as if he handed them the world. His hand ached by the time the umpteenth fan passed by.

Well, things became a little different when a young man carrying a boy on his back arrived at the signing table. Takeshi noted the blank look on his face, which was more from confusion than indifference, and couldn't help but internally smile at how controlled the brunet was on keeping a polite façade, even if he most likely didn't know Takeshi's name. It wasn't often that fans brought kids with them, and they were rarely the fans themselves; however, the brunet didn't look older than 20 at most and the kids didn't look related.

"Hey, there!" Takeshi said with a wave.

The young man jumped a bit in surprise before quickly realizing where he was. He didn't respond right away. Takeshi smoothly re-directed his gaze to the little girl by the man's side. The man _knew_. He saw _through_ him. Takeshi grinned at the wide-eyed girl. "What's your name?" he said cheerfully.

The girl blinked and composed herself quite admirably despite her young age and meeting face-to-face with a celebrity. There was a small fire burning in her bright eyes, something that Takeshi found himself missing. "My name is I-pin!" she said, smiling cutely.

"Wow, that's a pretty name for a pretty girl!" And Takeshi really meant it. It was probably the most genuine thing he said all day. I-pin blushed. "Want me to sign that for you?"

"Yes, please," I-pin said, handing him her album. "I—I really like your singing, Yamamoto-san. You make me feel better when I'm sad, too."

A million thoughts raced in Takeshi's mind at once before he had the chance to bat them away. Then, without much resistance, his lips curled into a soft smile, the motion easier now. He saw a brief flash of approval in her guardian's eyes, which shone like amber under the lights, a startling but unique color.

"Thanks, I-pin," Takeshi said, signing her album with a tiny heart at the end. "And I really like your braids!"

That seemed to make I-pin preen. "Big Brother did them for me! Big Brother, this is Yamamoto-san! Remember?"

When the attention was directed at the young man, Takeshi finally looked up, curious to hear what he had to say. He was greeted with a kind smile.

"Hello, I'm I-pin's brother, Tsuna. I heard a lot about you."

Takeshi smiled back. "Not a big fan?"

Tsuna shook his head quickly, careful not to wake the sleeping boy on his back. "Oh, no! I'm just too old. That's what I-pin says anyway." He smiled sheepishly. "I'm sorry if I offended you, Yamamoto-san."

Laughing, Takeshi handed I-pin back her album and twirled his black marker in his hand. "Nah, I understand. I can respect guys like you. You look like you have it all together." It was kind of true. Tsuna seemed pretty set, what with having two younger siblings. Takeshi couldn't help but find it admirable and almost envious.

Tsuna grinned as he relaxed a bit. "Yeah, let's go with that."

Takeshi beamed before pointing at the album Tsuna was holding. "Wanna get that signed?"

"Oh, yes. It's not for me though. It's for a friend. Her name's Haru. She's a big fan."

"No problem!" Takeshi wrote a small message for Haru and signed the album with big loops. He paused for a second, pretending to check over his signature, before taking out an extra CD from underneath the table and signing that, too. Tsuna widened his eyes when he handed them both to him. "Here. That one's on me." Takeshi winked. "Hope you become a fan." He leaned in to whisper, "World domination's on our to-do list at the moment."

Tsuna laughed. "Good luck with that, Yamamoto-san."

Takeshi smiled easily. "Call me Takeshi. Yamamoto-san's my dad."

Tsuna nodded. "Okay, Takeshi." Takeshi couldn't deny that he just felt _comfortable_ talking to Tsuna. It was both a weird and warm feeling. "Take care of yourself. I don't think anyone would be happy if you push yourself too hard."

Blinking, Takeshi could feel his composure wane a bit, though managed to bring it back up again. "Thanks, Tsuna. Take care of the kid, too!"

Tsuna smiled. "Thank you, Takeshi."

It was almost strange seeing Tsuna and his siblings go, but their presence settled in the back of Takeshi's mind, present and still warm to the touch when he remembered them again on the way to Kyoto. He had a feeling that they would meet again and found himself hoping it would come sooner than later.

* * *

Even though Nagi had managed to negotiate a less rigorous schedule with the higher-ups, Mukuro could feel the end of his wits waning. He smiled pleasantly at each fan, pulled a simple parlor trick on their albums to keep himself from personally signing it, and spoke whatever each fan wanted to hear without them asking him. The last thing he needed was someone telling him what to do.

"Mukuro-sama, you're so handsome in person!" a fan said. "And your eyes—Gosh, they're just so beautiful!"

"Thank you, dear," Mukuro said, already forgetting her name. His brow slightly twitched when she reached out to hold his hands. Thankfully, he wore his customary black gloves, preventing much unwanted skin-ship. "Oya, is there something else you need? Perhaps"—he patted her hand—"this?"

The fan gasped, immediately retreating her hand and opening it to see a cute pig keychain on her palm. "Oh my God! How did you do that?"

Mukuro smiled, which didn't quite reach his eyes. "A lovely secret of many, my dear."

When the fan moved onto Ryohei, Mukuro thought that he deserved a pat on the back for handling that oh so _admirably_. His head slightly ached while he conversed briefly with another fan who was clearly here for someone else, which was fine. While Mukuro liked attention, he'd rather have it in small increments, not thrown in his face all at once. He stifled a chuckle when he stole a glance at the skylark, who greeted each fan with barely a twitch. Maybe he could poke at him a bit. It would please the fans and entertain Mukuro, like killing two birds with one stone or in this case, killing a large bird with two extra markers Mukuro was conveniently carrying.

A familiar hand brushed his shoulder before he could even grab the markers. "Don't, Onii-san," Nagi whispered in his ear. "We have half an hour left. Please be patient until then."

Mukuro huffed. "Spoiling the fun as usual, Nagi-chan?"

His sister smiled at him briefly. "Preventing collateral damage, Onii-san."

"You're becoming more and more perfect at your job every day."

Nagi flushed, then shook her head. "Half an hour."

Mukuro smiled and clasped his hands together like a good little boy would. "Of course. Anything for you, my sweet Nagi."

His sister retreated to the back and resumed texting on her phone, leaving Mukuro alone. He maintained his pleasant smile for the next fan, who was politer than most and was compensated with a pink carnation, eliciting coos and squeals of encouragement from other fans in line.

"I love you, Mukuro-sama!" someone yelled.

Mukuro winked towards the direction of the voice, making the girls scream. Ah yes, small increments. He glanced at Hibari, who looked like he was going to suffer from an aneurism. Before Mukuro could do more to make the fans go crazy, he caught a small voice saying, "That's Rokudo-san. Don't call him a pineapple, okay? He doesn't like it."

Rather than getting irked at the mention of the… _unsavory_ fruit, Mukuro was more amused. He took in the odd trio: a young man who barely looked old enough to have children, a small girl, and a boy sleeping on the man's back. He was briefly struck by the image of Daemon carrying Nagi on his back and holding Mukuro's hand when they were younger, much younger. The memory was fleeting and disappeared when Mukuro smoothly regained his composure. "Kufufu, and who is the pretty little lady?"

The girl squeaked, reminding Mukuro of sweet Nagi when she was a child, all shy and prone to being vulnerable. "M—My name is I-pin."

Smiling, Mukuro snapped his fingers before a rose appeared in his hand. He handed the flower to the stunned girl with a wink. "A beautiful rose for a beautiful girl," he said.

"T—Thank you, Rokudo-san," I-pin said, taking the rose tenderly in her hands. It was very much like how Nagi handled the flowers in the garden. "C—Can you please sign this for me?"

Mukuro chuckled. "Already done, dear."

The girl's guardian peeked over her shoulder to see Mukuro's signature in her album and looked up in amazement. "That's incredible."

Mukuro smirked. Such compliments were always welcomed. "I live to please."

The brunet chuckled. "Well, you're living up to it well."

Mukuro blinked, faintly surprised. Most fans didn't respond to his purposely flirty one-liners, too incoherent from meeting him personally or stuttering out incomprehensible words to really engage in conversation. The ones who do were mostly fun, though they didn't linger for too long after taking pictures and receiving signatures. Mukuro smiled. "But of course. I believe I didn't catch your name…?"

The girl's guardian smiled sheepishly for forgetting his decorum. How endearing. "Tsuna. I'm I-pin's brother. Thank you for the rose, Rokudo-san. You're very talented."

Mukuro was _very_ pleased at the compliment. "Of course. I expect nothing less of myself."

Tsuna laughed, which was a lovely sound. Mukuro hid a smile behind his clasped hands. The brunet's reactions were quite charming.

"Are my albums signed, too?" Tsuna said.

Mukuro could feel Nagi's questioning eyes on the back of his skull. It wouldn't hurt to have some sort of fun for a minute or two. "Oh? Seems like I missed one." He held out his hand. "I'd like to do it properly, if I may?"

When Tsuna blinked and handed over his album, clearly oblivious to the implications of the gesture, Mukuro took it all in stride, signing the copy with a flourish. He lightly huffed when he saw I-pin gaping at his brother as if he was the most dense person in the universe. Quite right, Mukuro thought in amusement, handing Tsuna his album back.

The idol took a daring step forward by letting their fingers brush briefly with each other and was rewarded with another reaction. Tsuna stared at his hand for a moment before dismissing it as a clear invention of the imagination. Mukuro smiled at him charmingly, feigning innocence. "Kufufu, it was a pleasure to meet you, Tsuna."

Tsuna smiled back, assuming his polite visage again. "Thank you, Rokudo-san."

"Please, call me Mukuro."

"Ah, Mukuro-san then." Tsuna broke eye-contact for a second with a sweet blush tinting his cheeks. "I know you might hear this all the time, but you have very beautiful eyes."

 _No_ , Mukuro thought, fascinated with the way Tsuna's own eyes seem to glow a gorgeous amber under the lights. _Not mine, but yours._

"Thank you, Tsuna. And you look lovely as well." Mukuro never handed out compliments himself. He'd rather be on the receiving end, but this time, he'd make an exception. And, he was rewarded again with another beautiful blush.

After quickly saying his goodbye, Tsuna left, making Mukuro chuckle. To think that he met an adorable bunny in such a drab town was enough to keep him in a better mood the whole day. If Nagi noticed, she didn't ask. Mukuro was certain though that she was just more grateful that no one was sent to the hospital this time.

* * *

Being a leader was something that Ryohei never thought he'd be able to accomplish, but helping people was a natural inclination in his blood. His whole family didn't hesitate in doing the same whenever they could and Ryohei wasn't any different from them. Saying his customary greetings over and over again to each and every fan only pumped him up more than wear him out. Their bright eyes and smiles were what mattered, and Ryohei refused to see anyone sad while he was around.

"Hello to the extreme!"

The two fans laughed, and the more outgoing one raised her hand for a fist bump that Ryohei enthusiastically returned. They exchanged a thumbs-up before Ryohei signed their albums.

"Ah, Ryohei," the shy fan said, fixing her glasses. "I just wanted to say that you're really cool a—and that it was so nice of you to stand up for Gokudera like that. In the music bank, I mean."

Her friend nodded. "Yeah. It was seriously crazy how the lady just said those things."

"We're on your side," the shy one said, tucking her black hair behind her ear. "So don't be too sad, you know?"

Ryohei grinned, really touched by their words. "I'm not! Not when I have you and all the fans with me. We can do a lot of extreme things together! Thanks, Megumi-chan!"

Megumi blushed and jumped when Ryohei raised his hand for a fist bump, but managed to return the gesture timidly. He waved when the friends left and glanced down the table to check on Gokudera and Hibari. They were doing fine so far. Well, if no one was killing each other, Ryohei marked it as a good day. Seriously, his friends could get _too_ extreme sometimes. Nagi was a saint for even bothering to deal with their shenanigans.

Rolling his shoulders, Ryohei tossed his dried-out marker in the trash bin underneath the table and grabbed a new one. He immediately brightened up when he saw a little girl appear. "Hello to the extreme!"

The girl giggled and didn't hesitate to shake his bandaged hand, making Ryohei's grin widen. He reached out to shake her guardian's hand when he saw the boy in his back. The brunet smiled apologetically. "Sorry, my hands are full. But I'd still shake your hand if I could."

Ryohei laughed and waved it off. "Not an extreme problem!" He remembered when Kyoko would climb on his back whenever she was tired and always took pride in the fact that she mostly sought him out instead of Knuckle when they were younger. A small pang dug in his chest. He missed his siblings.

"What's your name, kid?" he said to the little girl.

"I-pin!"

"Are they your brothers?"

"Yes, that's Big Brother and Lambo!"

I-pin was just quaking with tons of energy and Ryohei wondered if she could practice boxing. She definitely had an extreme amount of potential inside that small body of hers. He accepted her album and signed it with his new marker. "And what's Big Brother's name?"

"Tsuna-nii!" I-pin said, her eyes sparkling with clear love. "Big Brother is the best brother in the world!"

Tsuna blushed. "I try."

Ryohei wondered if Tsuna truly knew that his sister loved him that much. There was nothing to be modest about when it came to family. Grinning, he gestured for Tsuna's two albums. "Let me sign those! You look like an extremely good brother, Tsuna!" He signed them both, almost snapping off the marker's tip. His voice softened, fond. "I get it. I have a little sister too, and I'd do anything for her. Sometimes you feel like you're not doing enough but their happiness is extremely worth it, right?"

Tsuna's eyes widened at the unexpected but resonating sentiment. Ryohei considered it a huge win when Tsuna smiled at him; it was brighter than a thousand suns. "Yeah, it is. Thank you."

I-pin nodded, catching onto Ryohei's drift. Smart girl. "Yes, thank you, Sasagawa-san!"

Ryohei laughed. "Call me Ryohei! I'm not that extremely old yet!"

He gave I-pin a fist bump before they left and waved until they reached Gokudera. Yeah, today was an extremely good day. It was even better when he called Kyoko on the way to Kyoto and no one tried to kill each other in the car.

* * *

Hayato didn't _hate_ people. He just didn't like pointless conversations. The inanity drove him nuts. He knew he had anger issues but when his body was practically at 20% most days, he thought it was justified to be cranky. Nagi just told him to endure and made sure he slept plenty in-between events, which he was grateful for. He honestly didn't know how she was related to the pineapple-freak or the creepy melon-head. Family was weird that way, he guessed.

Time dragged on in the fan-signing. He engaged in short conversations with the fans, shaking some hands when they asked politely enough, and kept his distance. It was the politest façade he could muster without being ticked off much. The fans thought of it as his bad-boy thing, which he supposed was fine as long as it didn't affect the group negatively. It was a miracle that Hibari even lasted this long. At least he had an outlet with that action movie deal he just snagged. It would probably take a few days until Hayato could sit down at a piano again.

"Thanks," he said to another fan, smiling slightly out of decorum. It did the trick, sending the girl squealing.

As a casual distraction, Hayato uncapped his water bottle and took some sips. The cool liquid soothed his throat, sending him to a place of short calm, before the next fan arrived. He almost cursed when he saw a little girl no older than 8 or 9 bound towards him. Kids just weren't his forte. Also, the guy with her was _way_ too young to be her dad.

"Hey," he said, trying to pose as non-threatening as possible. "How are ya?" He mentally cringed. Fuck, where was Ryohei when you needed him? The justifiably-called kid magnet?

"I'm good!" the girl said with a bright smile. "How is Gokudera-san?"

Hayato forced on a smile. At least the kid was polite. He guessed that her guardian deserved some brownie points for that. Ah shit, he really didn't know what to do. Somehow maintaining a professional front, Hayato accepted her album, which was handed to him with two hands, and signed it quickly. The faster this was over with, the better. For the sake of the kid's sanity, he thought with an internal grimace. "I'm doing good."

"Big Brother is a fan of you, Gokudera-san!"

Okay, the Gokudera-san thing might be a bit much. Hayato looked up to meet the brunet's gaze; his finger slightly twitched when the kid's brother widened his eyes. Damn it, did he slip?

"Thanks," Hayato said, trying to ease the awkwardness. "Do you want those signed, too?"

That seemed to snap the brother out of it. "Ah, yes." He handed Hayato his two copies. "One of them is for a friend. Her name's Haru. The other one's mine. Yamamoto-san gave it to me."

Hayato felt a brow quirk up despite himself. The baseball idiot did what? Album copies were mostly there as a raffle prize or if somehow the fans broke theirs, which happened quite often. "He did?"

The brunet tilted his head, oblivious to the implications. "Is that a bad thing?"

Hayato pursed his lips. Depends really. He was pretty sure Nagi wouldn't like it if Yamamoto just _gave_ away albums like pieces of candies. Something about revenue sales; it always had to do with money. Then again, she apparently didn't stop him. "No. Just, he doesn't do that often."

"Oh, I see."

After signing the two albums, Hayato could almost see the light at the end of the tunnel when he handed them back. He probably fucked up with this fan interaction. He didn't even ask for their names, just wrote down whatever Yamamoto had written before. Ryohei had the worst handwriting out of all of them. Hopefully he didn't crush the kid's dreams or anything.

"Gokudera-san, what's your favorite song in the new album?" the girl, I-pin, suddenly said.

" _Famiglia_." Hayato paused for a second. If he fucked up here, then he was done. "How about you?"

I-pin grinned. "That's one of my favorites, too! I like _Kokou no Pride_."

Oh thank God—not his fan. Hayato smiled slightly. "You're a Hibari fan?"

The girl blushed, clearly at a loss. "Ah, well, I—"

Her brother laughed warmly and patted her head, quickly stepping in to save her the embarrassment. Hayato was seriously grateful for that. "She is. She never stops talking about him."

Nodding, Hayato handed him the albums back. "Here."

He was close to the goddamn light and almost sighed when the brother's mouth opened again. "You know, I'm actually a big fan of one of your singles. _Angel in Lavender_?"

Hayato blinked, then looked up at the brunet— _Tsuna_ , his mind corrected—with some surprise. Not many fans so far told him that, but it really humbled him if they did. It was his personal favorite. "Really? That's a pretty old song. I wrote it before my debut." And it had been hell to convince the producers to include it in the new album. If Nagi hadn't been there as a necessary mediator, Hayato would've blown the place up and left for elsewhere.

Tsuna nodded. "I really liked your piano composition in that one. It had some nice blend of Chopin and Beethoven."

Hayato quirked a brow, barely containing a smile from spreading on his face. "You're a classical fan?"

Tsuna laughed softly. Hayato's breath nearly hitched. It sounded… _precious_. He mentally whacked himself in the head. Where the hell did _precious_ even come from? "I guess you can say that. I played the violin when I was younger and my mother loved it. Your song reminded me of her. So, really, what I wanted to say was thank you for making that song. It means a lot to me."

It didn't take any brain cells to figure out that Tsuna's mother had passed away, and the loss still lingered. Hayato was the same. _Angel in Lavender_ was a piece he had written in memory of his own mother, the most precious person in his life. He had struggled to move on and get past the grief, but it stuck to him like a leech.

Hayato smiled gently, capping his marker. "No, thanks for listening. That means a lot more to me."

The fleeting kinship was momentarily broken when Nagi suddenly appeared behind him. She leaned down to whisper, "We have about 15 minutes left, Gokudera-kun. I don't want to rush you but…"

"Sorry, we're holding up the line," Tsuna said, catching on to what Nagi was saying. "It was nice to meet you, Gokudera-san."

Hayato nodded, a bit irked at losing probably the most sensible conversationalist around; however, he was more relieved at the thought of leaving soon. "Yeah, sorry about that. It was nice meeting you, Tsuna, I-pin."

The girl brightened up when he mentioned her name and waved at him shyly before she left. Hayato felt like that was one less fuck-up in his life so far.

* * *

Each and every herbivore that came by to get his signature—it was probably one of the most tasteless things Kyoya ever had to do—was just that: an herbivore. He didn't speak more than four words with them and rarely shook their hands, a habit that the pineapple's sister told him to try to get out of. Kyoya didn't bother to try. The herbivores didn't seem to have a problem with it, chalking it up to his stage persona, and mostly squealed when they were rejected. Kyoya found it odd but what did he know about them? He was a carnivore.

So when the next set of herbivores arrived, Kyoya merely stared. He remembered the herbivore from Namimori Middle, but since Namimori was a small city to begin with, he thought it was merely a coincidence. And it seemed that the herbivore didn't recognize him in return, which was…strange. Still, Kyoya didn't think that the herbivore would subject himself to this sort of fanfare. Then, Kyoya lowered his gaze to meet a small animal's terribly red face. Everything clicked into place.

The man stared impassively when the fluffy herbivore placed a bento on the table. "This is for you, Hibari-san," he said carefully. "My sister, I-pin, made it for you."

Kyoya accepted it with a small nod and placed it aside where there were piles of different offerings the herbivores gave him. The small animal bashfully handed him her album copy. She seemed to have studied him well. Kyoya signed it, paused briefly, and then wrote a small note next to her name in Mandarin: _Prosper, little animal._

After handing it back, Kyoya held out his hands, silently urging the herbivore to hand him his copies. "Ah, sorry," the herbivore said. "Here."

Kyoya signed them silently and handed them back. He read the herbivore's name in the others' handwritings—Tsuna. Did the herbivore not remember him at all? Kyoya was certain that he had left a dominating presence in Namimori. His pride seemed to waver slightly. _No one_ forgot the Hibari name and no one ever forgot a Hibari. He was snapped out of his internal musings when I-pin placed a stuffed bird on the table and pushed it gently towards him. It greatly reminded him of Hibird.

"For me?" he said.

I-pin nodded before hiding behind the herbivore's legs. Kyoya's lips slightly twitched at the gesture. " _Xièxiè_." [Thank you.]

The little animal squeaked then tugged the herbivore away to leave. Kyoya didn't miss the grateful smile the brunet gave him. "Thank you, Hibari-san. Take care."

Kyoya didn't offer him a glance. He suppressed a scowl when the new herbivore squealed and went off on how handsome he was. Nodding and feigning interest, Kyoya took her album and signed it quickly so she could leave. She spent another two minutes babbling about him and _Alaude_ of all people. The pineapple's sister swiftly intervened to move the line along, which Kyoya appreciated (though he would never say it).

When the signing finally ended, Kyoya only took two things from the herbivores' gifts: the stuffed bird and the fluffy herbivore's bento. In his private car, he placed the toy on his lap and opened the bento, which was still warm. The warm scent of miso soup wafted in his nose. If Kusakabe, his driver and personal manager, saw Kyoya smiling faintly through the rearview mirror, he never brought it up.

* * *

 **A/N So, a lot of you peeps have been asking about what the** _ **idols**_ **are thinking about when they meet Tsuna in "Starstruck", so I present to you—"Lovestruck"! :^D**

 **Here, I suppose it'll delve in deeper on the idols' reactions to certain events that happened in "Starstruck", but not everything will be about Tsuna. There might be extra scenes before and after meeting him to provide more context and just to show how the characters are while he's not around. I won't cover** _ **every**_ **single one of their POV's because lord help my hand (and flimsy brain) if I do, but I'll try to cover as much grounds as I can while also showing more of the idols' worlds (seriously, Tsuna, maybe you should probably** _ **try**_ **checking the entertainment section sometimes, lol).**

 **I covered most of Decimo here since a fan-signing is fairly fast to get through. I tried to make them as accurate as I could to their characters in this AU.**

 **Much love to my beta, nico~**

 **Thank you so much for reading! And I know y'all are waiting for "Starstruck" to be updated soon so take this as an apology. :'^)**

 **Have a lovely day~**

 **Little Miss Bunny**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: This chapter is supposed to be a little interactive, but since FF sucks with links, I posted them on AO3 (Archive of Our Own) if you'd like to check them out in real time! My user there is Little_Miss_Bunny. I'll post the video titles at the bottom A/N so you can check them out, too. Also, I'm using translated English lyrics since this is technically written in English anyways. I hope you enjoy the voice references. :'^)**

* * *

" _Yesterday I was in a really good mood_

 _I carved your name on the planet I passed by_

 _After a while when the stars come out_

 _That star shines the brightest."_

\- "Give You the Galaxy" by Bolbbalgan4

* * *

There were only 3 items on his to-do list, but they quickly felt like a million when they started dragging out. There were some good days and some bad, and then there were the ones that were just in-between—not really good but not shit either. This was one of those days.

Stars glimmered in the darkening sky. Vasya had never seen so many in Japan before. He was all too used to industrial fumes and artificial city lights obscuring them from view. _Namimori isn't so bad_ , he thought. It was a small town from what Luce had told them with a lot of mountains and scenery; the people were also supposed to be nice, too.

Nodding his head to the beat of the music from his phone, Vasya slumped in his seat and rested a foot against the back of Verde's chair. The van was a tight fit, but he figured everyone was too tired to complain about it. Usually Colonnello would whine and groan throughout the ride, but he was passed out in the back and using Fon's shoulder as a pillow. Lucky bastard. If Vasya fell asleep now, he'd never wake up, so might as well push through it.

Viper was texting on his phone near the front while Lal Mirch whispered in his ear, probably talking about the venue they were heading to. A baseball cap laid over Reborn's face, who leaned his back against the window and propped his legs up on the empty seat next to Vasya. Quickly, Vasya took a picture because catching Reborn _without_ his signature suits was a gold mine. He snickered to himself but yelped when Reborn kicked his leg.

Rubbing the sore spot, Vasya slid his headphones down to his neck. "The hell?"

"Delete it," Reborn said, his voice husky from sleep.

"Delete what? I didn't do anything."

" _Delete_ it."

Vasya rolled his eyes. "Whatever."

"That's not a yes."

"Fine. Jesus." Vasya tugged his headphones back on and flopped in his seat again, grumbling curses under his breath. "Go back to sleep, Satan."

A bunch of notifications continued popping up on his phone. Huffing in frustration, Vasya checked his settings and turned off Twitter and Instagram. He thought he had turned them off before. They usually ate up his battery, which was the most annoying part. Sure, he appreciated it when fans tagged him and sent nice messages, but he promised himself that he wouldn't get too absorbed in what they thought of him. YOLO was his life motto after all. He lived his life the way he wanted.

Still, he couldn't help but check a few comments. His lips twitched into a smile when he saw them underneath a picture of him posing with Colonnello in their costumes for the annual Vongola Halloween Town Party (Vongola knew how to party, okay?). Colonnello was dressed up as Bakugou in his U.A. school uniform and Vasya was Hitoshi in his P.E. uniform, with black smudges underneath his eyes and his hair styled out in flares like the character. Sticking out his tongue, Colonnello gave the camera a rock 'n roll hand sign while Vasya grinned crookedly, giving off some major "fuck with me and die" vibes.

 _Rosie_09002: IM DECEASED AASJKDWEOIFWFJA_

 _sKULLluV: duuuuuuuuude i was hoping i didnt geta heart attcks anymore_

 _bloooolb: ITS A WHOLE FKING SET (someone pls get viper to do it too. he can have a magician quirk or sth)_

Vasya snickered. Yeah, the whole group had basically dressed up as BNHA characters. Fon had been Todoroki, Verde was Iida, Reborn unsurprisingly went as Chisaki, Lal Mirch had picked Momo, and Viper—well, Viper never came to those kinds of things. A text message chimed from Vasya's phone. It was from Daniela: _does shuichi-senpai want anything in particulr?_

Rolling his eyes, Vasya snorted under his breath before typing up a quick reply: **srsly? how am i supposed to know? i thought you liked giotto**

 _fuck youuuu. does he or not?_

 **idk ask kyoko**

 _shes on a flight_

 **what to where**

 _idk_

 **why cant you text giotto or sth. oh rightttttt**

 _ill find a way to kill you cities over_

Vasya just sent a laughing octopus emoji that stuck out its tongue.

 _can you ask colonnelllo then? hes not looking at my msgs_

Vasya peered over his shoulder. Yeah, Colonnello was just dead and Vasya wasn't much of an asshole to kick him awake. Honestly, he was exhausted after doing stunt work for a TV show the past few weeks, and now he had to move onto shooting a music video for their comeback album. He was also pretty sure that Colonnello slept last night catching up on some anime shows. Like, 5 AM late. It was 10:23 PM now. Whoever planned the music video concept was going to die. He texted Daniela: **dudes out like a light**

 _can u ask when he wakes up. no pressure tho. its pretty late. thank youuuuu~_

 **yeah yeah**

Vasya stifled a laugh when Daniela sent a cute cat emoji giving two thumbs-up with fish-shaped confetti flying everywhere. Looking out the window, he perused the buildings passing by. Some had their lights still on with customers checking out the merchandise or buying last-minute dinner after work. The street lamps illuminated the roads with a muted yellow hue, putting Vasya at ease. Even though he never heard of this place for all his 7 years in Japan, it wasn't so bad. He kind of expected more valleys and hills to be honest, like a _deep_ countryside.

When the van turned into an empty street, that was everyone's cue. Yawning, Vasya stretched his arms above his head, feeling some bones pop in his back, and slumped back in his seat. He squinted when his eyes were assaulted by bright lights, which were probably the soft boxes. Soon the van stopped nearby some waiting staff members.

"Alright, wake up," Lal Mirch said, slipping on her red jacket. "The models are already here and we still need to go over few things. Colonnello!"

The blond groaned but didn't move from Fon's shoulder. "'m alive…"

Slipping on sunglasses, Viper clicked his tongue. "The more time you waste, the more we have to pay them."

"Would you like me to carry you?" Fon said, not budging an inch.

Colonnello blinked blearily before sitting up and yawning. "I still have some dignity left."

Vasya snorted. "What dignity?"

"Shut up."

After everyone clambered out of the van, Vasya deeply inhaled the crisp evening air, his lungs grateful for some _nature_. It smelled a little salty too, and he could hear hushed waves over the railings. Any longer in the vehicle, he would've lost his shit. Oregano then appeared out of nowhere with her tablet. That was honestly a superpower. Vasya never found out how she did that. She was dressed down in casual clothes but looked impeccable as always.

"The models are all finishing up with makeup," she said, scrolling on her screen. Her purple eyes looked brighter underneath all the lights. "We're going to run through some couple scenes for the music video individually and in groups."

" _Groups_?" Colonnello said, suddenly wide awake. "Wait, how long are we staying here? And why _now_?"

Lal Mirch sighed. "Did you listen to _anything_ I told you yesterday?"

Colonnello shrugged helplessly. "My brain is legit dead right now _so…_ "

"You'll be briefed while you're getting dressed," Oregano said quickly. "We won't be doing the choreo until tomorrow so it's just scenic shots and photos for now. Nothing too strenuous."

"Strenuous," Verde mumbled almost mockingly.

Vasya had to cough back a laugh for that one. When he was ushered to a trailer, he grumbled but didn't say anything while they dressed him up. Yui, the head stylist, smiled sympathetically. "It'll be over before you know it, Skull-san! Don't worry!" Before Vasya could wear the blue cardigan another stylist held out for him, Yui shook her head. "Oh, not that one, Maya. It's supposed to be the gray one. Yes, that one! Here, Skull-san."

Vasya checked himself in the mirror. Reaching down to his calves, a gray cardigan fit snugly around his shoulders over a beige shirt and torn skinny jeans showed off his lithe legs. He rolled his neck when Maya laid out some dark boots for him and tied the laces securely after he slipped them on. Usually he'd wear the clothes himself but his limbs felt like lead.

"Sorry," he said when he was plopped down on a chair.

Maya shook her head in understanding. "It's alright. We'll take care of you."

Yui walked over while three makeup artists wiped and powdered Vasya's face. "Oregano-san told me that the concept they're going for is a natural, soft look. Basically…soft boys." She laughed when Vasya grimaced.

"Skull-san, don't do that," Akane scolded lightly.

Vasya quickly smoothed out his face. "Sorry."

"Anyways, you'll be paired with a girl and act like a couple, though it's supposed to be natural so there's not a lot of directions. Think of it as improv. Your partner is Watanabe Hotaru. She'll meet with you when you're finished."

"Okay."

As soon as Vasya was done with makeup, he was led outside to the railings. Reborn was already prepared, wearing a pale yellow sweater and slacks with loafers, and chatting amicably with his partner, a slender and pretty woman in a short green dress.

"Hello!" a bright voice said. "I'm Watanabe Hotaru and I'll be in your care, Skull-san!"

Vasya quickly grinned and gave his partner a jaunty wave. "Hey! You can just call me Skull! And nah, it's more like I'm under _your_ care. Are you from here?"

Hotaru laughed heartily. She was a cute girl with short blond hair and bright brown eyes. Compared to the other girls, she was wearing purple shorts and overly large white sweater. "Yes, I am! I'm actually from Kokuyo though. The place we're in now is Midori. Just think of Kokuyo as the plebs and Midori as the 1%." She shrugged. "It's mean but true."

Vasya laughed. "I think we'll be _fine_."

Hotaru grinned and gave him two thumbs-up. Most of the time models were usually professional and polite, which wasn't a bad thing. Vasya had met his fair share of uncooperative ones, but it was nice to just relax and get in the groove of things.

"Okay, everyone!" Moretti said, waving a rolled up script in the air. "We're gonna start soon so better have the right partners!"

"Let's do our best, okay?" Vasya said.

Hotaru nodded. "Roger that, captain."

Their photoshoot went on for _ages_. By the time all the members had a chance to actually sit in the break tent, Vasya collapsed on the cot and grunted when Colonnello fell on top of him. "Bastard, find your own," Vasya grumbled, closing his eyes.

Colonnello made himself comfortable on Vasya's stomach. "Only one here. Just shut up…"

"Turmeric's looking over the photos," Lal Mirch said, heading for the coffee machine. "There's only decaf left, Reborn." The man just hummed vaguely in response as he typed something in his phone.

Vasya groaned. "He took like, a million pictures. He's going to take _forever_."

"What he said…" Colonnello mumbled, sluggishly jabbing his phone against Vasya's ribs. "Charge…"

"Mine's dying."

"Mine's dead."

Verde walked past them to grab some leftover candy from a bowl and passed his own charger to Vasya. "Use this."

Vasya grinned widely and plugged it in an extra outlet. "Thanks, Mom."

Verde sighed quietly, unwrapping a chocolate bar and eating half in one bite. The fridge opened with a small whoosh. "There's no more strawberry milk," Viper said almost petulantly.

"I believe one of the staff members gave the last one to one of the models," Fon said, heating up some water. "

Viper rubbed his eyes. "They're being paid to pose and look nice, not _raid_ our personal stock."

"She didn't necessarily raid it."

"Whatever. I'm docking a small percentage of her pay. Who was it?"

Fon just shrugged. Lal Mirch tossed an empty basket on the table. "There's no more tea by the way."

Fon blinked at his boiling water. "Then what do I do with this?"

Listlessly, Colonnello pumped his fist in the air. "Drink it."

Vasya picked up his head for a brief moment. "Seconded." Then he thumped back against the soft pillow.

Lal Mirch rolled her eyes and poured herself coffee in a Styrofoam cup. "Isn't there anything else to drink?"

"The fridge is empty," Viper said, pursing his lips. He pulled out his phone and plopped down on a chair across from Reborn. "And the _snack tables_ are almost empty. Everyone, just gluttons…"

"There's a 24/7 convenience store nearby," Vasya said, checking his phone. Damn, it was 3:11 AM.

"Not it," Colonnello said, dozing off again.

Reborn looked up then. "Much appreciated for volunteering. One espresso."

Vasya groaned. "No, I only _suggested_ it."

"You're not using the company card," Viper said.

Fon smiled. "I'd appreciate it if you get some oolong tea."

"Any tea is fine," Verde said, tugging his sweater sleeve with a frown.

Eyes still closed, Colonnello smiled. "You know what I want, snookums."

Vasya made a face. " _Lal!_ " He knew he lost when Lal Mirch dumped her half-empty cup in the trash. Grumbling under his breath, Vasya shoved Colonnello off of him and grabbed a cap and mask from his disorganized bag with some difficulty. "Freakin' hell…"

His feet dragged against the floor when he left the tent before Verde said, "Vasya, your wallet."

"Huh?" Vasya turned around just in time to catch his wallet. He laughed sheepishly. "Whoops. Thanks. Don't miss me too much, heathens."

"We part in such sweet sorrow," Colonnello said.

"Except for you, bastard."

"Yeah, fuck you too."

With a snort, Vasya quickly snuck off the site, careful not to bump into anyone. He pulled out his earbuds, plugged them in his phone and clicked random above his playlist. Soft piano notes started playing in rhythmic beats, making Vasya relax. The evening air was fairly cool and the sky was still dark. The streets were quiet except for his blasting music and quiet footsteps. _It's nice_ , he thought, walking further away from the photoshoot.

Getting away from the spotlight was usually nice.

The convenience store was average with some goods that Vasya recognized. He didn't mind though as long as they had what he needed. Pausing his music, he slightly cringed, the fluorescent lights blinding him, before pulling down his cap to shield his eyes. A deep, faintly raspy voice filtered through the speakers to a slow, mellow tune. Vasya recognized it as Levi's new ballad, "Till the Next Life".

" _So darling, hear me now_

 _When your arms are 'round me for one last time."_

Muffling a yawn, Vasya headed for the drinks section when he noticed the clerk sleeping on the counter. He blinked. Well, it was around 3 AM and the poor guy seemed exhausted. _Big mood, bro,_ he thought, walking quietly to the back.

" _Come 'round the silver pane and let me see you 'gain_

' _cause you were all that I had, will ever have."_

Vasya hummed to the music while he perused the beverage coolers. He perked up once he found what he was looking for and started to gather a whole bunch of drinks in his arms. When the Ramune glass clinked against the others, he tensed, glancing over his shoulder to see if the clerk woke up. The poor guy didn't move a muscle.

" _Leave me here if you gotta go_

 _But darling, don't forget 'till the next life_

 _My heart's always got room right here for you…"_

"Freakin' hell," Vasya muttered, hauling all the drinks in his arms. He almost dropped them when the door closed with a loud slap. "Jesus Christ!" He froze, then relaxed when the clerk didn't wake up. Now he was wondering if the guy was dead. He should be worried— _a lot._

He clambered over to the counter and laid down the drinks, careful not to make too much noise. Frowning, he stared at the brunet, unsure of what to do, before he remembered Reborn's coffee. "Ah, shit," he said, not finding a coffee machine nearby. It wasn't like Reborn couldn't function without coffee; however, Vasya had overheard Lal Mirch telling Oregano that the man had barely slept more than half an hour in the past two days since his modeling gig with Armani. Reborn could be an OP motherfucker but he was still human. Well, Vasya liked to believe that anyways. Plus Reborn was scary when he was even a little irritated.

With no other choice, Vasya reached over the counter to shake the clerk's shoulder. He wasn't about to ditch the place without paying. The cashier groaned a little. Okay, that was a good sign. "Uh, you alive?" Vasya said.

The clerk straightened up in his chair, nearly falling over with a tiny squeak. "I'm so sorry, sir!"

Smiling, Vasya waved him off. "It's okay. You looked like you needed it."

Cheeks reddening, the cashier quickly moved to grab the large assortment of drinks one by one to scan. "I really am sorry. I usually don't do that."

Vasya shrugged. "Happens to everyone. You're lucky it was me instead of some asshole who came in."

The clerk laughed sheepishly. Vasya slightly tensed when the other man checked him over rather subtly. _You don't know me, you don't know me, you don't know me_ , he thought a little desperately. He relaxed when the clerk started to bag his items instead of asking. Maybe Namimori residents were actually nice.

"Is there anything else you need, sir?"

Vasya pursed his lips. "Do you sell coffee? I couldn't find a machine around. Please say you do." He mentally punched himself. Why did he sound so much like a little brat?

The clerk smiled reassuringly. "We do, sir. It's because we brew the coffee ourselves. Which would you like?"

"Do you have espresso? Something strong? Like, really strong?"

"Yes, we do. Is there anything else you'd like in the coffee, sir?"

"I'd ask you if salt was an option, but I'd probably get killed, so no."

The clerk widened his eyes. "K—Killed?"

Shit. Vasya waved his hands in front of him. "No, no, no! I was just joking." He laughed awkwardly. Yeah, like _that_ helped. The cashier looked like he'd just been sucker-punched again. "Yeah, just bad jokes. Forget I said that. I'm pretty tired and it's late. The asshole who wants the coffee is just really picky so, yeah. Seriously, forget I said that. It's nothing."

 _Shut_ up, _you dumbass!_ he mentally screamed.

A strange look overcame the clerk's eyes, and Vasya _swore_ he didn't just feel a shiver up his spine. It wasn't hostile; if anything, it kind of reminded him of his granny when she got all fired up for his sake. Usually…not a lot of good things happened after that. Minor, but still bad. His granny could give any bastard one look and they'd shut up right then and there.

The clerk's lips curled into an all-too sweet smile. Yeah, definitely nothing good. "How does this _asshole_ like his coffee, sir?"

Vasya jumped a little in surprise. Was this dude actually _serious_? Sending prayers to get out alive in one piece from Reborn's future wrath, Vasya rested his elbows on the counter and leaned forward. The clerk had pretty brown eyes, he realized up close. "Don't tell me you're actually going with the salt thing."

A mischievous gleam twinkled in the clerk's eyes when he grinned. It was pretty cute. Vasya mentally punched himself again. "Who said anything about salt, sir? We do have some extra spices in the back."

Vasya laughed. Clerk's got sass, he'd give him that. "I like your spunk. But you shouldn't go around threatening to screw up other people's drinks."

The clerk smiled pleasantly. "Our customer service is outstanding, sir. _You're_ my customer and my job is to please."

Vasya couldn't help but laugh again. "Oh, you're good, kid."

The clerk huffed. "I'm 20 years old, sir. I'm not a kid."

Vasya smiled behind his mask. "Huh. Well, I guess you're not _that_ short." He was surprised at how relaxed he was; all the stress from today's work was slowly winding down.

The brunet rolled his eyes, though Vasya could see him smile a little anyways. "So, one espresso?"

There was a natural familiarity when the clerk spoke the word. Vasya chuckled. "Just don't make it _too_ obvious."

The clerk winked. "I won't make any promises."

Laughing, Vasya shook his head and leaned his cheek against his fist while the clerk disappeared in the back to prepare some espresso. He could hear the machine whirring quietly as it brewed the beans. One of the magazines caught his eye. It was _Spade_ , one of the most popular entertainment magazines in Japan and led by the famous melon trio's mother. The cover had Ganauche posing as the lead character of the TV series, Devil's Ridge. He smirked at the camera with a lit cigarette between his lips, while wearing a leather jacket and bloody bandages wrapped around his chest. Next to him was "Ganauche: 'I've always wanted to play the sorta good guy'" in bold white letters.

Vasya rolled his eyes and flipped to page 13. Ganauche was a chill guy but his method acting was just something else. A bunch of scenes from the show were plastered across the pages. Vasya skimmed through the article, which was a review on the latest episode last week _and_ an interview. When he turned to the next page, there was a picture of him with one leg over a motorcycle and talking with Ganauche in daylight, surrounded by producers and other stuntmen. They both wore the same clothes: a tattered white shirt smeared with grime and fake blood, black pants and dress shoes.

"The hell did you say about me?" Vasya whispered, trying to find his stage name. He remembered that stunt. They had one take to do it since the bridge could only blow up once, so a lot of the pressure had weighed on his shoulders to make it perfect. Well, not that Vasya liked to brag or anything but he did it— _flawlessly_ , of course.

The rich aroma of coffee soon filled the air. Vasya sniffed it involuntarily and almost melted. How did coffee smell that _good_? He wasn't a coffee drinker—there was one time years ago when he stole Reborn's cup and took a sip; he hated it—but damn, he was lowkey craving it. Shaking his head, Vasya returned to searching for his name until a voice spoke up, "Are you a fan of Skull?"

Vasya jumped before placing the magazine back on the rack. Tongue dry, he said, "Are you?"

"I don't have much time to watch TV," the clerk said, ringing up the register, "but I see some stuff sometimes when I get the time. I can't remember the show's name, but I remember him riding a motorcycle on a broken bridge. I don't know how he managed to do that, but it was amazing!"

Vasya's gaze flickered down to the counter. There was nothing but sincerity in the brunet's words. "Thanks…"

"I'm sorry?"

"Devil's Ridge. That was the drama."

"Oh. You're a fan!"

"I guess."

Fishing for his wallet, Vasya silently thanked the gods that he didn't drop it along the way here and pulled out some bills, not even bothering to check the total price. He handed it over to the clerk who smiled politely. "I wish I could do some of the things he does, but I'd probably be too terrified. Although, I hope he's careful and doesn't push himself too much. He's only human after all. It'd be terrible if he got hurt." He handed Vasya his change.

A tingle of warmth swept across Vasya's chest. Words like that…really helped. A lot. It wasn't like Vasya was a complete narcissist or anything, but having fans and other people tell him to be careful was touching. So what if he was a sensitive shit? Kind words could go a long way. There just wasn't enough of them.

"Is everything okay, sir?"

Vasya huffed. "You can keep it." He grabbed the bag of drinks and the coffee. He had to admit. It was kind of sad that he had to go. This was a nice break from all the work he went through tonight and the clerk was nice too, so that was a bonus.

He paused at the door when the clerk said, "Thank you for choosing Tanaka Mart. Have a nice day!"

Vasya smiled when he looked back. "Thanks. You, too."

The automatic doors slid open as he stepped out. They closed behind him with a tiny thud. It was back to work again. Playing his music again, Vasya hummed to the tune and started heading back, his steps a little lighter.

* * *

Finding her suitcase wasn't too difficult and no one stopped Kyoko after recognizing her. Actually, she thought that no one did. Most of the people walking around Namimori Airport were too busy on their phones or finding their flight terminals. There were some cautionary moments when younger folks looked her way, but they all walked past her and called out someone else's name.

Tugging at her white mask, Kyoko rolled her brown suitcase beside her while she headed for the pick-up area, weaving in and out of crowds. She busied herself by scrolling through her phone for any messages. There were several Instagram notifications, mostly likes, which made her smile. It might be vain but she loved seeing people like her posts. She just had to be careful to not get swept away and let it get to her head.

The last picture she uploaded was a few days ago. She had taken a selfie with Rina, the youngest member in , and both of them sported white caps and red hoodies, sending V-signs at the camera. They were at the set of the popular reality series "Friend and Foe" where famous celebrities would be pitted against each other in teams and do a bunch of athletic activities. The girls had been in Team A with Gelaro, Jaeger, and Ricardo while Team B had Lussuria, Iris, Fabio, Genkishi, and Massimo.

 _ottava: QUEENS_

 _reborebo: why are you all so gorgeous ;-;_

 _CoR111: gurl that episode was wiLD. i need me sme more mom jaeger._

Kyoko chuckled. Jaeger, a member of Vindice, was the most responsible member out of them, keeping Ricardo from going crazy on the other team and the girls from causing too much mischief. With a foam sword, Kyoko had almost whacked Massimo off a pole into the waters if Jaeger hadn't knocked it out of her hand in time. He even hauled Rina over his shoulder so she wouldn't try to throw sponge balls at Fabio while Gelaro competed against him. The objective of _that_ relay course was to not get involved if you were on the sidelines.

Suddenly her phone started to ring. Kyoko grinned when she saw who it was and picked up the call. "Shu-nii! I just picked up my suitcase!"

"Oh, nice timing!" her older brother said, forcing Kyoko to lower the volume. Both of her brothers talked loudly all the time and she wasn't planning on going deaf any time soon. "I'm right outside the airport! We're in a silver van."

"Okie-dokie. I'm heading out!"

Kyoko speed-walked outside, stepping into fresh autumn air. She looked around the line of cars and taxis, searching for her brother when she noticed a silver van among the tiny chaos. "I see you! I'll head to you!"

"Okay, be careful!"

When Kyoko jogged towards the van, Shuichi popped his door open and stepped out with a wide grin on his face. "Kyoko-chan! Glad you made it!" He gave her a huge hug before leading her to the back. "I can put your suitcase in the trunk."

"Is someone else in the car?" Kyoko said.

Shuichi opened the trunk and lifted her suitcase inside. "Yeah. Asari!"

Kyoko waved at the blue-haired man who smiled back. "Hello, Kyoko."

"Hi, Asari-nii!"

When the siblings settled inside the van, Shuichi drove out of the airport. Kyoko was practically bouncing in her seat. It had been a while since she'd seen her brother—two weeks in fact—and since Primo was on a small, very rare vacation, she managed to squeeze a few rest days out of her manager and join them out in Namimori.

"How was your flight?" Shuichi said.

"It was good," Kyoko said, looking up from her phone. "Were you coming from somewhere else?" She wrinkled her nose. "Wait, did you just come back from the _gym_?"

Shuichi laughed heartily when she pulled her mask up. "Yeah. Sorry, but we couldn't just stay in the hotel. Their gym's pretty cool though."

"I don't need details!" Kyoko huffed. "What about the others?"

Asari hummed to himself. "Well, Alaude is visiting his home in Midori, I believe. Lampo unfortunately couldn't make it because, well, his mother called so he'll be spending time with them. Daemon's sleeping in today since he's still jet-lagged from New York, and Giotto and G went out shopping."

Kyoko laughed. "Of course they are!" Those two were shopaholics—well, more like G was. They had grown up together since childhood with Asari and were nearly inseparable. If G wanted to shop, Giotto would usually follow and vice-versa. It was pretty cute. "I know Namimori has all these crazy discounts!"

Shuichi slowed down at a yellow light. "They do!" Asari and Kyoko laughed at his incredulous face. "I saw these tracksuits for 80% off! And they were Nike!"

"You're contracted with Adidas though," Asari said, chuckling.

Shuichi pouted. "I'm sure there's some Adidas merchandise out there…"

Kyoko brightened when she saw Aika's Sweets pass by. "That's one of the cafes recommended online. Hana-chan said it has the best cakes! Oh!" She stretched forward from her seat, startling her brother.

"Kyoko-chan, you need to sit back!" he said.

"You didn't eat lunch yet right, Shu-nii?" she said, ignoring his warning. "Remember Hana-chan? My friend from uni? I told you about her! She's _really_ smart and her family owns a restaurant here. It's a _yakiniku_ place too, and I know how much you love meat! You can tell the others, too!"

Asari took his phone out of his sweatpants. "That sounds like a good idea. I can text the others."

Shuichi furrowed his brows. "I have to maintain my diet though."

Kyoko rolled her eyes. "You're on vacation, Shu-nii. And besides"—she squeezed Shuichi's broad shoulders—"you're _very_ fit. I think you'll be _fine_. You worry too much."

Asari laughed reassuringly. "You might want to listen to her this time."

Shuichi sighed, signaling that Kyoko won. She grinned when he said, "Okay. We won't be intrusive, right?"

"Me and Hana-chan are really good friends. She won't mind." It was true! They had met in a business class freshman year and somehow became good friends despite their differing personalities. Hana would help Kyoko out with her classes if she couldn't make them due to scheduling conflicts, and since Kyoko's parents were big on education, she tried her best in them all, managing to get good grades. Her fingers flew across her phone's keyboard. "Besides, it's good business."

"Alright, but _please_ , sit back."

Huffing, Kyoko plopped back in her seat, smiling when Asari gave her a wink. Hana's response didn't even take a second: _Yes, that's fine. How many?_

"Did you ask them yet, Asari-nii?" Kyoko said, clicking on a S-live notification. She beamed when she saw that it was a live-stream of Decimo in Kyoto. They were in a karaoke room and selecting random songs on the machine; the whole set-up was most likely a promotional event. She remembered how Shuichi and Primo had done a bunch of live-streams when they first debuted, too. "Ryo-nii's live now with Decimo. I think they're going to sing soon!"

"Really?" Shuichi said. "They must be putting in a lot of work."

Kyoko laughed when Takeshi whooped in encouragement for Hayato, who got the short end of the stick of going first. A stream of flaming hearts continued rising from the bottom, signaling likes, and the view count kept increasing along with users' comments. Now there were 32.5k people watching. Asari chuckled and showed Kyoko his phone. "Look at what Daemon said."

Kyoko giggled. Asari had asked him, " _yakiniku for lunch?_ ", and Daemon sent a dying cat emoji in response.

"Oh!" Ryohei said from the stream. "I know that song!"

Hayato furrowed his brows. "Wait, you did randomize it, right?"

Mukuro placed a hand over his chest. "Don't you trust me?"

"No."

"G and Giotto said okay," Asari said. "They're at the outlet. Alaude said he already ate."

"Okay," Shuichi said. "Can you pull up the GPS for the mall? Is it far from here?"

"I can."

Kyoko quickly exited the app to answer Hana: **5 of us! is that okay?**

 _Yes. Let me know when you're here. I'll have a room for you ready. Travel safe._

 **always~**

Returning to S-live, Kyoko bounced in anticipation when Takeshi handed Hayato the mic. "I can't sing this," Hayato deadpanned, his voice reverberating in the karaoke room.

"We believe in you!" Takeshi said, giving him a thumbs-up.

"I don't even remember how this goes!"

"What song is it?" Shuichi said, turning the car right. "Is Gokudera singing?"

Kyoko nodded. "It's _Snobbism_. Oh, he's starting!"

Since the song started right away, Hayato barely had time to prepare when the TV screen suddenly changed to scenic hills and counted down to 0. Ryohei and Takeshi cheered when he started singing:

" _I can't even think of sleeping if I don't spit out this junk all around_

 _I'll stay frustrated if I don't spew all this unbearable bloody vomit_

 _Spending life like this, just throwing hearts at each other and sneering_

 _That's the strange morality in this town."_

Shuichi whooped. "Gokudera's _good_."

Kyoko let the stream play for a few more minutes, laughing in delight when Shuichi added some adlib beatboxing and vocal riffs to the chorus. Chuckling, Asari soon helped him out with a few beatboxing of his own. She didn't even think about recording them and posting a video on Instagram like she usually did. It was their private moment, just them. Maybe it was selfish but Kyoko missed these little moments in her life.

When Shuichi pulled up at Namimori Outlet Mall, G and Giotto were already waiting outside at the entrance, holding some shopping bags. Kyoko moved to the back seats when Giotto opened the door. He beamed when he climbed inside. "Hello, Kyoko!"

G climbed in last and shut the door. "Hey."

Kyoko smiled. "How was shopping?"

G mussed up his red hair before putting his cap back on. "Good. They have a hella amount of discounts." He pulled out a case of expensive-looking rings. "These are real _gemstones_ , like legit. How the hell do they sell for ¥10,591?"

Giotto snorted. "G almost threw a fit and the clerk was so confused. She thought that G was angry that the price wasn't any lower." He burst out into giggles. "She—She actually offered to give him a new customer's discount."

G groaned while the others joined Giotto's infectious laughter. "Yeah, no. Shit, do you know how much these go for? Each is worth a _fortune_."

"Well, did you take the discount?" Asari said.

"No, I just bought them."

Giotto sighed. "She almost cried."

"Not my fault."

"It's _100%_ your fault."

Asari chuckled behind his hand. "G is an _oni_ after all."

Shuichi laughed. "That's too accurate!"

"I hate every one of you bastards," G said, slumping in his seat.

Kyoko smiled. He didn't. They were all family after all. She met Shuichi's eyes in the rearview mirror for a brief moment. Their grins were equally blinding and warm.

Soon they arrived at Kurokawa Cuisine, which was a large restaurant that was filled with the savory scent of grilled meat and bamboo plants. Hana had told them to come through the back so they could avoid the customers, which everyone was grateful for.

"Hana-chan!" Kyoko said, leaping towards her friend and pulling her into a hug. "How are you? And wow! Your restaurant looks amazing!"

Hana gave her one of her rare smiles. "It's good to see you too, Kyoko. Come in. I got a room ready."

The other men followed them into a private room that had a long table with a grill in the center, maroon drapes and brown walls. A few bamboo plants stood at the corners, providing a warm glow. Kyoko pointed at the door. "I'll be right back!"

Shuichi blinked. "Where are you going?"

Kyoko grinned, giving him the V-sign. "Just some girl things. Oh, and making sure we leave this place alive!" She closed the door behind her and hugged Hana again. "Oh, it's really good to see you again, Hana-chan!"

Hana huffed but hugged her back nonetheless now that no one else was looking. "We just Face-Timed last week."

"That's not the same!"

Leading Kyoko to her office, Hana let her inside. "I have a worker coming in who's going to be working your table."

Kyoko grinned. "Aw, you shouldn't have. But thank you! That means a lot." She looked around Hana's workspace. There was a computer on top of a sturdy desk and some bookshelves against the cream-colored walls. A worn couch was right beside them. "You work in a nice place. How are your parents?"

"They're fine. Just taking a break from the restaurant."

A knock came from the door, prompting Kyoko to tilt her head. "Are you expecting someone?"

Hana raised a brow but still said, "Come in."

Kyoko's jaw nearly dropped. A man, who looked like Giotto's _clone_ , entered the room. He was smaller than Primo's leader and had brown hair instead of blond; the softer edges about his figure suited him well though. He looked tired, with dark bags underneath his eyes. Kyoko had the urge to give him a hug. He bowed in greeting. "Good afternoon, Kurokawa-san. Rin-san said you called for me."

Hana leaned against her desk. "You're early. That works out actually. Sawada, this is Sasagawa Kyoko. She's a good friend of mine."

There was some recognition in Sawada's eyes when he glanced at Kyoko, though he seemed unsure as to who she was. Poor man was tired to the bone, Kyoko thought. She smiled at him and opened her mouth to greet him in kind when he said, "Do you happen to be Sasagawa Ryohei's sister?" Immediately, he blushed and flickered his eyes to the ground. It was just about one of the most cutest things Kyoko had ever seen. "I apologize, Sasagawa-san. That was very rude of me."

Kyoko couldn't help but laugh. "I didn't know you hired such adorable waiters, Hana-chan." She mentally cheered when the man blushed a little harder. It looked good on him; he had some life after all.

Hana rolled her eyes. "Don't do anything dumb and drive him away, Kyoko. He's the only competent monkey around here."

Kyoko frowned. "This isn't the zoo, Hana-chan, and you should really stop calling people monkeys. It's very rude."

Hana merely huffed before addressing Sawada again. "Sawada, I'm going to assign you to one of the private party rooms. We have special guests today and I expect you to give them the best service we have to offer."

Sawada sighed a little in relief. God, Kyoko just wanted to wrap him in blankets and cuddle. She pouted. "And you say I'm the one driving him away."

Hana ignored her childish antics like an expert. "He's the only one who won't screw up serving them. I'm pretty sure he doesn't know who they are either. He seriously lives under a rock."

Kyoko felt a sympathetic pang when the waiter grimaced. She knew that Hana didn't mean to be rude but her friend's bluntness could put anyone at unease. Trying to alleviate the mood, Kyoko beamed. "You'll be perfect! What's your name?"

The waiter jumped a bit. "S—Sawada Tsunayoshi. It's a pleasure to meet you, Sasagawa-san."

Kyoko waved her hand. "No need to be formal, Tsuna-kun! Call me Kyoko. And yes, Ryo-nii is my brother." Tsuna jumped when she led him out the door. "Come on. I'll show you the way. Thank you, Hana-chan!"

"Just don't cause any trouble," Hana said, resigned. "Sawada, don't mess this up. And don't tell anyone!"

"Yes, ma'am!" Tsuna said before closing the door. He turned to Kyoko and tilted his head. Okay, who kept this cute creature from her for this long? "Who will I be serving, Sasagawa-san? Are they friends of yours?"

Kyoko smiled as they walked further back to where the private rooms were. The customers' chatter behind them became muffled by the thick, wooden walls. "Well, yes. They are. And please, call me Kyoko, Tsuna-kun."

"It would be impolite of me to address you in any personal manner, Sasagawa-san. I hope you're not offended." Kyoko gave him what she called her "sadder than looking off into the distance" photoshoot look. It worked like a charm. "But I can call you Kyoko-san if you insist."

She perked up immediately. "Thank you, Tsuna-kun! That means a lot to me!"

When they drew closer to the room, loud laughter and shouts were muffled by the closed door. Kyoko sighed. There they go again. "Brace yourself, Tsuna-kun."

Tsuna widened his eyes when he heard a long string of curses courtesy to the _wonderful_ G. "Who exactly am I serving, Sasag—Kyoko-san?"

Kyoko grinned. "Primo. Well, some of them. Don't worry! They won't bite, Tsuna-kun."

Probably…

* * *

"Daemon's probably not even sleeping," G said, placing his cap aside.

Giotto put it inside his backpack. "He's had a rough flight. Just leave him be. Besides, we're supposed to be on break." He smiled teasingly. "And since when did you start caring about Daemon?"

"He can choke on his stupid Egyptian cotton for all I care."

Asari scrolled through his phone. "So that's why the blankets are so nice."

Honestly, no one could ever tell if Asari was joking or not because he spoke in such a matter-of-fact tone with an easy smile on his face. Shuichi could probably flip a coin and still end up wrong. He guessed that was what their fans meant when they said that Asari was a "natural troll". Still he smiled. "I haven't slept that well in a long time."

Giotto smiled mischievously. "Didn't you hear that joke about the bed though?"

G groaned. "Don't you dare."

Asari tilted his head in an innocent fashion. "What joke?"

Shuichi hid his twitching lips with his clasped hands, already knowing what was coming. Giotto didn't waste time in saying, "It hasn't been made yet."

He burst out laughing and held onto his stomach while G just rolled his eyes. Asari joined Giotto, easily amused by anything, and Shuichi chuckled behind his hands. G sighed in an almost exaggerated fashion. "Both of you shut up!" That only made Giotto and Asari laugh harder.

Stifling his chuckles, Shuichi made himself busy with the menu and calculating all the calories as he flipped through the laminated pages. He smiled when G covered his ears.

"The one fucking time I miss Alaude," G said, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"I'll let him know," Asari said, already texting one of the most feared members in the group. "I'm sure he'll be happy

"The hell? No, you're not."

"But I am."

"Be careful, Giotto," Shuichi said when their leader almost fell off his chair. He shook his head, smiling, when Giotto gave him a shaky okay-sign.

A hush fell over the room when the door slid open. Shuichi widened his eyes when the waiter stepped inside. He looked like Giotto's clone—well, except for the fact that he was smaller, a brunet, and strangely fluffier. Shuichi vaguely wondered if there was anything Giotto was hiding. The group already had enough fractures as it did.

The waiter assessed the room for a brief second, which Shuichi couldn't fault him for. Sometimes they could get carried away, but without Daemon and Alaude, it wasn't so bad. Bowing in polite greeting, the waiter soon spoke, "Good afternoon. My name is Sawada Tsunayoshi and I will be your designated server for the day. Have you finished going over the menu yet?"

No one spoke for a moment. Giotto seemed like he was questioning his life and looked at G for answers, who didn't offer any. Asari blinked once, twice, and smiled because smiling was his only answer to bizarre situations and worked 99% of the time. Shuichi's faith slightly shook, _slightly_.

"You know him, Giotto?" G said, raising a brow and immediately attacking the issue at hand. Despite his gruff exterior, he looked out for their group the most in his own way. "Is there a lost brother I never heard about? He actually kind of looks like you. It's creeping me out."

Tsunayoshi flushed but still managed to stay polite. Shuichi could admire that. "I don't know who Giotto-san is, sir. I assure you that there is no blood relation between us if that's what you mean."

The silence was deafening after, which Shuichi thought was a little too dramatic for his tastes. However, they were the first group Vongola made back in 2010. The amount of time and effort they pushed into molding Primo was pretty overwhelming, so meeting someone who didn't know who they were was…strange. Shuichi didn't know if it was a good sort of strange or the disappointing kind.

G pursed his lips. "Wait, you don't know who Giotto is? This." Giotto cried out indignantly when G snatched his cap off, uncovering his infamous blond hair in all its glory. "This guy is Giotto."

"G, give that back!"

Asari merely smiled at their antics. When Shuichi glanced at Tsunayoshi, the brunet seemed like he was trying to get it together. He felt some pity for the young man. It seemed like being confronted on his knowledge of celebrities was a normal occurrence. Shuichi could respect that the waiter managed to still be polite.

"I apologize if that offends you, sir," Tsunayoshi said.

Kyoko appeared behind him and patted his shoulder reassuringly. Shuichi had always thought that Kyoko was too kind. "This is why Hana-chan chose Tsuna-kun."

A ripple of understanding struck the men, but G still didn't look convinced, ignoring when Giotto slapped his leg to make him stop staring at the poor waiter. Asari swiftly assumed his position of being the none-too-helpful mediator. "That was very impolite, G. I apologize, Sawada-san. My friend can be quite tactless, but he doesn't mean any harm."

G scowled at him. "I fucking dare you to say that again, Asari."

Asari just smiled at him, never fazed at the red-head's crude tongue. He'd probably smile Death in the face. "You're very impolite, G, and—"

"Guys," Giotto said, trying to reign in the ropes, "stop. I'm really sorry, Sawada-san. I didn't mean to offend you. G just doesn't know when to keep his mouth shut sometimes."

G gaped at him. "Hey!"

Tsunayoshi nodded. "I'm not offended at all, sir. Please don't worry about me."

Giotto looked hesitant but let the matter rest. He kicked G's leg under the table and, ignoring the red-head's hiss, addressed Shuichi, "What do you recommend, Knuckle?" He must've seen him looking over the menu.

Shuichi pulled on a grin. "The Kurokawa Special Selection. It's the ultimate course and I think it'll be enough for all of us."

Nodding, Kyoko hopped on over to sit down next to him. "The meat here's really good, Giotto-nii. You can order some other stuff, too."

G shifted through the menu. "Is there anything less fattening?"

"I'd recommend the _kuroge wagyu_ beef," Tsunayoshi said, drawing all eyes on him. "We import it from the Miyazaki prefecture. It's fresh and lean so it's not too fat or rich. It's a little pricey but worth it."

G closed the menu rather brusquely. "I'll get that then."

"How much meat is in the special, Sawada-san?" Asari said.

"That has several different arrays of meat," Tsunayoshi said. "It's served with the more popular meat selection like _galbi_ , _gyutan_ , _zabuton_ , and _makura_. I assure you that it'll be enough for the five of you, sir."

Giotto smiled. "We'll take that then."

Tsunayoshi scribbled their orders down in his notepad. "So, one order of _kuroge wagyu_ beef and a Kurokawa Special Selection?"

Shuichi nodded. "Yes. Thank you, Sawada-san." He was surprised at how sincere he sounded.

"You're welcome, sir. Excuse me." Tsunayoshi squeezed in-between Giotto and G to get the grill started. Shuichi went on alert when Kyoko giggled behind her hand. That was never a good sign. "Your orders will be here shortly. If there's anything else you need, just press this button and I'll be right back."

Asari nodded. "Thank you, Sawada-san."

Tsunayoshi smiled. "You're welcome." He left the room with a bow, closing the door.

Everyone in the room then looked at each other until Kyoko snorted a laugh. "Isn't he adorable?" she said.

G narrowed his eyes at Giotto, who sank a little in his chair. "He looks like your _twin_."

"I don't have any!" Giotto said. "I'm being serious!"

Asari reached across the table to pat Giotto's hand. "We believe you."

"Well, there are incidents of non-blood related lookalikes," Shuichi said. "Don't worry, Giotto. It's probably nothing."

Giotto gave him a grateful smile before pulling out buzzing phone. He glanced at the caller ID for a second, lips pursed, then silenced it.

"Who is it?" G said.

Giotto shook his head, though everyone could tell his smile was fake. "Just a wrong number."

Asari held up his own phone. "Alaude said to eat double the portion in his stead."

G rolled his eyes. "You're shitting me. You actually told him."

"Well, why not? It's best to spread the love around."

Giotto laughed when G just sighed irritably and muttered, "I need a drink."

"Don't push yourself too hard," Shuichi said, chuckling.

Kyoko looked up from her phone then, her eyes bright. "Oh, right! I forgot but your last concert was just _amazing_! Giotto-nii, I think I cried when you sang _Nandemonaiya_. It was just so beautiful." She showed them her phone with Giotto's clear, gentle voice singing on a low volume. There was no instrumentals. "I even saved the video!"

" _The wind that blew past the space between us brought loneliness from somewhere far off._

 _After we had cried, that sky always appeared to be so clear."_

Giotto smiled sincerely. "Thank you, Kyoko." He shrugged, laughing sheepishly. "It wasn't planned though. There were some technical difficulties with the audio system, so I just sang that to pass the time."

"Right! That's what they were saying on Twitter!" Kyoko swiped on her phone. "Shu-nii, you did this, didn't you?" She showed her brother a video of Alaude onstage, singing to _Beautiful_ with his low, slightly raspy voice.

" _People who do not know light say: 'I like the darkness'_

 _In there lives the color of happiness, like a soft sunlight filtering through the trees._

 _People who shut out sound say: 'I like silence'_

 _In there lives the sound of happiness, like a pure small stream._

 _Isn't what you were given your 'testimonial'?"_

Shuichi smiled, knowing what she was talking about. "I just gave him a small hand. He was able to do it himself."

Kyoko pushed his shoulder playfully. "Don't sell yourself short, Shu-nii. You blessed everyone with his rapping." She nearly jumped out of her seat. "Oh, and did you know that Gokudera-kun rapped on the live-stream with Yamamoto-kun? I think it happened a few minutes ago."

G waved her off. "Don't care. Hey, I saw a shoes store in the mall when we were walking out. There were some nice sneakers at 75% off. Do you want to go there after later?"

Asari gave Kyoko a slight smile without comment before turning to G, "What kind of sneakers?"

G rolled his eyes but said, "High-tops."

Giotto forced on a smile for the sake of them, clearly apologetic, but didn't force G or Asari to apologize. It was hard to separate friendship from professionalism. Frowning, Shuichi thought Giotto was too kind, and while that wasn't necessarily a bad trait—much better than being indifferent and cruel—there were limits to how much Giotto could give. Shuichi rarely approved of it, even though it was Giotto's way of holding them all together. He was just disappointed that they still couldn't sort out their own issues and Giotto only enabled it.

He ruffled Kyoko's hair, drawing her out of her confused stupor and making her pout. "Let's keep the business out of it, okay?" he said with a small smile. "We're all on vacation so good, wholesome thoughts."

Kyoko huffed but nodded anyways. "I just wanted to spread the love."

Shuichi draped a comforting arm around her shoulders. "I know."

The door opened and Tsunayoshi carried trays inside. "Your orders are here."

Giotto blinked. "That was fast."

Setting the trays down, Tsunayoshi smiled widely, which alleviated some exhaustion in his honey-brown eyes. "We only provide the best, sir."

Giotto laughed softly at that, amused, while Tsunayoshi placed the dishes on the table. Shuichi didn't realize how hungry he was until he and the rest jumped on the meat. Giotto nearly salivated at the mouth while Asari took control of the grill, flipping the meat over at the right time so they wouldn't overcook. Kyoko bounced in her seat, her chopsticks at the ready. "Thank you, Tsuna-kun! Why don't you join us? We have plenty more to go around twice."

Before Shuichi could gently reprimand Kyoko for the unashamed invitation, Tsunayoshi shook his head and said, "Oh no, Kyoko-san! I have to go back to work. Thank you for the offer." He bowed. "Please let me know if there's anything else you need. Enjoy your meal!" With that, he quickly left.

"Kyoko-chan," Shuichi said, frowning.

"What?" Kyoko said innocently.

"You know what."

"Just eat," G said, piling up his plate with _kuroge wagyu_ beef. Shuichi opened his mouth but closed it, picking at his own meat. He wasn't in the mood for this right now. "Right, I almost forgot. Knuckle, are you going to the gym tomorrow?"

"Probably," Shuichi said, smiling a little when Kyoko gave him some _galbi_. "I was thinking about going in the morning. There's a new workout that Ryohei told me about I wanted to try. Why? Did you want to join?"

Giotto pulled a small face. "New workout? You have a lot of them already." He shook his head when G offered him some garlic.

Shuichi laughed. Giotto, including Daemon and Lampo, wasn't a gym nut like the rest of them. Even G hit the gym sometimes since he hated dieting more than anything. Most of them suspected that it was some lingering trauma from his sister's less-than-appetizing cooking when she tried helping years ago. "You're welcome to join too, Giotto," Shuichi said.

"No, thank you. I'd rather just sleep in."

"I won't mind joining you," Asari said.

Kyoko giggled. "Join who?"

Asari smiled. "Knuckle, who else?"

"Should I feel betrayed?" Giotto said, drinking some water. "I should, right?"

"The world doesn't revolve around you, idiot," G said without heat. "Anyways, yeah, I'll join you in the morning, Knuckle. Just text me when you're up or knock on my door. I'll probably be up."

Grilling more meat, Asari chuckled. "No rest for the wicked."

Shuichi frowned. "G, you should sleep early." It wasn't a secret that G would stay up late, even on rare breaks, and not for any innocent reason either. He was a terrible workaholic like Verde, staying awake through the night to produce music for the group. "Try to relax. We're on break."

Kyoko nodded. "You should learn to sleep in too, G-nii."

G just waved a hand vaguely at Asari while eating some beef. "What he said. It's easier said than done anyways. There's no real fucking break. Just watch. They'll call us in early and cut everything short like they always do."

Shuichi noticed Giotto's smile wavering a little. "Don't say that," the blond said, jabbing G's shoulder playfully. "We have the whole two weeks to ourselves. No one's going to bother us so go to sleep, you dummy."

"Two weeks isn't going to make up the fact that the whole damn world is still moving, is it?" G's brows were set and furrowed, and his shoulders slowly squared. This was rarely a good sign. G was gearing up for a trivial fight that Shuichi wasn't all for. "Two weeks won't promise anything good for us. You know, I can't even take a fucking nice break without thinking about charts and numbers."

"It's okay, G," Giotto said quickly. "Just calm down. We get it. You're just—"

"If you say stressed, I'll punch you."

Despite G's lackluster threat, Giotto didn't flinch. On the other hand, Asari clicked his tongue lightly. "Really? At the table? I thought we wouldn't talk about business while we're out."

Shuichi pursed his lips, barely noticing Kyoko's hand squeezing his arm in reassurance. "That's right. Just leave it and move on, G."

G rolled his eyes. "Move on? Easy for you, bastard, but not all of us got the patience of a fucking _saint_."

Everyone jumped when Shuichi abruptly stood up from his seat, his chair scraping against the wooden floors. His hands were curled into loose fists. Giotto eyed them warily, which got Shuichi to loosen up a little. He exhaled deeply, trying to clear his muddled head. "I'm going to the bathroom," he said in an eerily calm voice.

No one stopped him from leaving, though Kyoko sent him a worried look. As steadily as he could, Shuichi closed the door behind him. He sighed then, his shoulders dropping with insurmountable weight. Tsunayoshi's voice drifted down the hallway, making him look up. "You need to calm down before someone sees y—"

Shuichi moved as soon as another young man raised his fist, closing their distance within seconds. He caught it swiftly and stepped forward, intimidating the other man with his bigger height. "I suggest you walk away."

Tensing up, the other waiter widened his eyes before tugging his hand away from Shuichi's stronger grip. The worker quickly averted his eyes to glare at Tsunayoshi, who was shielded behind Shuichi's back. Coward. A door slammed open, making him flinch. Shuichi met Hana's eyes for a brief second until she jerked her towards her office. "Get in, Akiyama."

Akiyama paled but followed her order anyways. Hana assessed Tsunayoshi first before raising a brow at Shuichi. Without another word, she closed her door with a small click. Sagging in relief, Shuichi turned around and checked Tsunayoshi for any wounds. "Are you alright? Thank God, I was passing by just in time."

Tsunayoshi bowed. "Thank you for helping me, Knuckle-san."

Shuichi scowled at Hana's office. "What a terrible young man." He hated anyone who tried to lay a hand on someone to hurt.

"Well, Akiyama-san is never in a good mood. He's only a high school student and has it pretty rough at home."

Skeptical, Shuichi blinked. There were no excuses for anyone trying to hurt someone. They were just that—excuses. "Are you justifying him trying to _hit_ you, Sawada-san?"

Tsunayoshi shook his head and it surprised Shuichi at how patient he really was. Anyone else who had almost been assaulted wouldn't be so calm. "Oh no. I'm only saying that I understand where his anger is coming from." Tsunayoshi frowned in worry. "He never lashed out like that before though. I hope he's okay."

Despite the fact that Shuichi disagreed, he found himself listening to what Tsunayoshi was saying. Normally he would've said so and pushed the argument until someone declared a victor. He had been raised to see that only one came out of the rubbles unscathed. Gently, without too much prejudice, he said, "Sawada-san, no man lives without sin. There are some people who can be saved and some who can't; there are those who want help and those who don't. You're not obligated to help those in need. You can't save everyone."

His breath nearly hitched when Tsunayoshi looked up at him, meeting his gaze without any fear. The brunet reminded him of Giotto and not at the same time. While Giotto's eyes were blue and shone brightly whenever he was fired up, Tsunayoshi's brown eyes looked amber. Shuichi had always been entranced by Giotto's fiery look, but he rarely saw those nowadays. He suddenly felt older than he really was.

"I would still do it," Tsunayoshi said.

Shuichi raised a brow. "Do what?"

"I'll try to save them. No matter the cost. Sometimes those who don't seek salvation are the ones asking for help—sometimes no one is there to listen."

Everything stilled and moved at the same time, a strange moment of pause that nearly made Shuichi sway on his feet. He had only ever felt like this in church or before a concert. The customers' faint voices mingled with clinking dishes from the kitchen, a soft and buzzing symphony. The only thing clear was Tsunayoshi and that actually comforted Shuichi more than scared him.

Before he knew it, he laughed, feeling more at ease. He rubbed the back of his head. His shoulders didn't feel as heavy anymore. "I apologize, Sawada-san. I have the tendency to preach at inappropriate times. Please do forgive me. I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable."

Tsunayoshi laughed kindly without judgement. It was a pleasant sound, Shuichi realized. "It's okay, Knuckle-san. It was rather enlightening. I enjoyed it."

Shuichi's chest felt a little warm. "Really? My friends think I can be very overbearing sometimes."

Tsunayoshi shrugged, and Shuichi didn't mind the comfortable gesture. If anything, it was…nice. He was only ever comfortable around the other Primo members and his family. "Maybe they need some enlightening, too."

Shuichi laughed again, the motion easier now. God, they did. They really did. "I believe so, too."

Some footsteps drew closer down their left and Shuichi barely had time to react when Tsunayoshi suddenly reached forward, with a little difficulty from their height difference, and flipped his black hoodie over his face. Tsunayoshi just smiled politely and bowed at a customer that walked by. "Kurokawa-san said to keep you all a big secret from the others. I apologize for being rude."

Shuichi found himself smiling. "Thank you, Sawada-san."

Tsunayoshi returned the gesture. "You're welcome, Knuckle-san."

Shuichi thought it was a pity he only met Tsunayoshi now, because he firmly believed that they could've been friends in another life.

* * *

 **Little Notes and Fun Facts**

 **1) The song Vasya's listening to in the van: "Sunflower" by Post Malone ft. Swae Lee**

 **2) Daniela is the 8** **th** **Vongola boss and her stage name here is "Ottava".**

 **3) Moretti is a CEDEF member from the manga. Here, he's an art director.**

 **4) The second song Vasya's listening to while walking to the convenience store: "D – Half Moon" by Dean ft. Gaeko**

 **5) Ganauche is the 9** **th** **generation Lightning Guardian in the anime/manga. Here, he's an actor.**

 **6) is the only girls group from Varia Entertainment. (Refer back to Chapter 1 :^D)**

 **7) Gelaro is a character from the KHR game "DS Fate of Heat III – Yuki no Shugosha Raishuu!". Iris is a member of the Millefiore in the anime/manga. She's the lady with the afro. Fabio is the name I gave to Settimo (7** **th** **Vongola don).**

 **8) Gokudera's song and voice reference: "Snobbism" covered by Aho no Sakata.**

 **9)** **10,591 is roughly $100 or 90.08 Euros.**

 **10) Giotto's song and voice reference: "Nandemonaiya" covered by nero.**

 **11) Alaude's song and voice reference: "Beautiful" by Ken Kamikita.**

* * *

 **A/N I…went the extra 50 miles with this one… *wheeze***

 **So yeah, there's some perspective, which is good, good. Different groups with different issues. We're going there, peeps. For the songs featured here, you can look them up on YouTube and be able to find them! If not, send me a DM or just head on over to my AO3 for easier access. The links will be there in the story. :^)**

 **Also, who else wants to give Knuckle/Shuichi a hug? And just Primo in general, lolol.**

 **So much love and thanks to my beta, nico~ And thank you, LadyIDK, for being such great support~**

 **Thank you so much for reading! I hope to see you again in the next chapter.**

 **Have a lovely day~**

 **Little Miss Bunny**


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